Deck 9: Basic Issues in Experimental Research

Question 1

A question that asks participants to rate the independent variable is a(n)

A)dependent variable.
B)instructional manipulation.
C)manipulation check.
D)confound.

Answer 1

C

Question 2

In an experiment, the independent variable is

A)measured.
B)eliminated.
C)held constant.
D)manipulated.

Answer 2

D

Question 3

A researcher conducted an experiment to investigate the effects of ambient room noise on test performance among college students. In this study, the independent variable is

A)noise.
B)test performance.
C)the students.
D)the room.

Answer 3

A

Question 4

Which of the following is used in a randomized groups design?

A)Random sampling
B)Repeated measures
C)Counterbalancing
D)Random assignment

Question 5

A counseling psychologist conducted an experiment to examine the effects of different marriage workshops on the relationship satisfaction of 120 married couples. He assigned participants randomly to one of four workshops or to a control group that did not attend a workshop. He then measured relationship satisfaction six months later. How many conditions are in this experiment?

A)1
B)4
C)5
D)120

Question 6

In a study of the effects of exercise on cardiovascular fitness, a sport psychologist randomly assigned participants to one of four groups. Participants engaged in aerobic exercise for either 0, 15, 30, or 60 minutes three days a week for three months. Which of the following statements is true about this study?

A)There is no control group.
B)Participants in the control group did not exercise.
C)There are four independent variables.
D)The dependent variable has four levels.

Question 7

Independent variable is to subject variable as __________ is to

A)manipulated; measured.
B)varied; held constant.
C)randomized; controlled.
D)measured; assigned.

Question 8

In a within-subjects design,

A)changes within individual participants are studied.
B)each participant serves in every experimental condition.
C)participants are split into groups before being randomly assigned to conditions.
D)the dependent variable is measured only once.

Question 9

A Latin Square design is used to control for

A)order effects.
B)experimenter expectancies.
C)demand characteristics.
D)placebo effects.

Question 10

In an experiment, the dependent variable is

A)held constant.
B)manipulated by the researcher.
C)allowed to vary randomly.
D)measured.

Question 11

To guard against order effects, researchers use

A)matched random assignment.
B)carryover effects.
C)counterbalancing.
D)experimental control.

Question 12

Researchers pilot test independent variables to

A)see whether they affect the dependent variable.
B)eliminate error variance.
C)look for confounds.
D)determine whether participants can detect differences in the levels.

Question 13

A researcher designed an experiment to determine whether being ignored by other people during a conversation affects the motivation to interact. In this study, the independent variable is

A)motivation.
B)social interaction.
C)conversations.
D)being ignored.

Question 14

A researcher conducted an experiment to investigate the effects of working in crowded versus uncrowded conditions on the job satisfaction of employees in a variety of work settings. In this study, the dependent variable is

A)crowding.
B)job satisfaction.
C)the employees.
D)the different work settings.

Question 15

Which of the following is a participant (or subject)variable?

A)Room temperature
B)Random assignment
C)Drug dosage
D)Extraversion

Question 16

Which of the following is an advantage of within-subjects designs over between-subjects designs?

A)Carryover effects are more likely.
B)They require fewer participants.
C)Confounding is less likely.
D)Participants are assigned to conditions randomly.

Question 17

When researchers use simple random assignment,

A)each participant has an equal probability of being placed in any experimental condition.
B)participants are assigned to conditions on the basis of scores on a randomly chosen personality variable.
C)the researcher can be certain that the groups do not differ.
D)the same participant serves in more than one condition of the design.

Question 18

Which of the following statements regarding independent variables is true?

A)They must involve qualitative variables.
B)They must have two or more levels.
C)They must be reliably measured.
D)They must be held constant.

Question 19

A researcher has 80 participants for a study that involves four experimental conditions. If she assigns participants to conditions using matched random assignment, how many matched clusters or blocks will she form before assigning participants to conditions?

A)80
B)20
C)4
D)1

Question 20

In the context of experimental research, a confederate is

A)an accomplice of the researcher who poses as another participant.
B)an independent variable that is measured rather than manipulated.
C)a cue that indicates to participants how they should respond.
D)a confounding variable that differs between experimental conditions.

Question 21

Treatment variance

A)cannot be distinguished from confound variance.
B)threatens the internal validity of an experiment.
C)should be eliminated.
D)reflects unsystematic differences among participants.

Question 22

Which of the following is not a way to decrease error variance?

A)Hold all laboratory conditions constant
B)Use a homogeneous sample
C)Use reliable measures
D)Use a double-blind procedure

Question 23

Which of the following is used to eliminate demand characteristics?

A)Random assignment
B)Double-blind procedure
C)Matching
D)Counterbalancing

Question 24

When participants' behavior is affected by their expectations, _________ occurs.

A)a carryover effect
B)differential attrition
C)pretest sensitization
D)a placebo effect

Question 25

Internal validity is increased by the absence of

A)randomization.
B)treatment variance.
C)confounding.
D)control.

Question 26

The degree to which a researcher draws accurate conclusions about the effects of an independent variable refers to an experiment's

A)internal validity.
B)generalizability.
C)reliability.
D)external validity.

Question 27

When measuring the dependent variable prior to the independent variable causes participants to respond differently to the independent variable than they would have otherwise, _______ has occurred.

A)differential attrition
B)pretest sensitization
C)a carryover effect
D)a selection threat

Question 28

Why is random assignment used to place participants into experimental conditions?

Question 29

What is an independent variable? A dependent variable?

Question 30

Contrast simple random assignment with matched random assignment as ways of assigning participants to experimental conditions.

Question 31

A "perfect" experiment maximizes _______ variance and minimizes _______ variance.

A)confound; error.
B)error; treatment.
C)treatment; error.
D)treatment; primary.

Question 32

In the analogy comparing variance to the picture on a television screen, error variance is analogous to

A)the picture.
B)static or snow.
C)a blank screen.
D)shifts in the picture.

Question 33

Differential attrition decreases internal validity because

A)the independent variable is not manipulated.
B)demand characteristics are present.
C)the experimental groups may differ in unknown ways.
D)pretest sensitization is more likely.

Question 34

Which of the following contribute to error variance?

A)Treating individual participants differently
B)Differences in participants' personal characteristics
C)Measurement error
D)All of these answers are correct

Question 35

What are the three essential properties of a well-designed experiment?

Question 36

Biased assignment

A)increases error variance.
B)is a particular problem in within-subjects designs.
C)eliminates confounding.
D)undermines internal validity.

Question 37

Error variance must be minimized in an experiment because it

A)leads to confounding.
B)makes the effects of the independent variable harder to detect.
C)leads to differential attrition.
D)increases expectancy effects.

Question 38

Demand characteristics are

A)the experimenter's expectancies about what will happen in a study.
B)placebo effects that occur in some experimental conditions but not others.
C)cues that indicate to participants how they should behave.
D)instructions that tell participants what to do in a study.

Question 39

In experimental research, researchers regard _______ as more important than

A)independent variables; dependent variables.
B)error variance; confounding variance.
C)internal validity; external validity.
D)systemization; randomization.

Question 40

Variance in participants' scores that is not due to the independent variable is either _________ variance or __________ variance.

A)treatment; error.
B)error; confound.
C)error; primary.
D)confound; systematic.

Question 41

Define internal and external validity. Which do researchers generally regard as more important, and why?

Question 42

Distinguish among treatment, confound, and error variance.

Question 43

Why must confounding be eliminated in all experiments?

Question 44

Discuss four common causes of error variance. For each cause you discuss, explain how its influence can be minimized in an experiment.

Question 45

Discuss four common threats to internal validity.

Question 46

What are the advantages and disadvantages of within-subjects designs relative to between-subjects designs?

Question 47

What are demand characteristics? What steps can be taken to minimize their influence in an experiment?

Question 48

What are order effects, and how do researchers guard against them?